"Mrs. Collins' February 16, 2011 NYT article, Mrs. Bush,
Abstinence and Texas, makes a number of disputable claims, the
most notable of which is that 'Perry used $3.2 billion in stimulus
dollars for schools to plug other holes in his budget.'"

The accusation that Gov. Perry oversaw the misuse or
misappropriation of federal education stimulus dollars is
incorrect. Texas state lawmakers used the $3.2 billion in state
stabilization funds to support ongoing commitments in education
which might not have otherwise have been fully funded. Simply
because no new initiatives were funded is not grounds for claiming
money was shifted from education to other purposes.

Furthermore, singling out the way in which the Texas Legislature
chose to appropriate the federal education stimulus funds is an
unfair criticism. The Campaign for Educational Equity reviewed 20
states’ use of education stimulus dollars and concluded "every
state in essence 'backfilled budget holes’” with them.